Sorry to jump the clutch bandwagon, but I finally got into the clutch on my 99 SE to see why it wasn't working right and want to glean as much wisdom as I can while it's going around. I really want to do this myself rather than sheepishly trucking it to the dealer - more so that I know than to save cash.

Problems included hard shifting and the clutch not fully releasing, even with lever all the way to the bars. Neutral was next to impossible to find, unless engine was off and even then difficult. First thing I checked was cable adjustment which was within spec.

- I drained the oil (which looked brand new, literally - I think there was less than 100 miles on it) and opened the cover to find everything looking new. Most parts ARE new, having been replaced by the PO but this bike hasn't been abused.
- I checked the disks; they were flat when checked against a tablesaw table.
- The basket rotates side to side easily, but with no play on its shaft - does that mean that it doesn't need clearancing on the back?
- The shift drum bolt seems tight when I put a wrench on it, but the head is 1-2mm above the cam gear assy, or whatever it is that the bolt is holding down.

I haven't removed the basket yet - I'm not sure what would be different behind it. The thrust washers are new, so can't be worn yet and I'm loathe to work the lock washer too many times. This would be its second bend.

? Do I need to pull the basket to check on the drum bolt?
? If I have to pull it, what's the best technique to undo and redo the lock washer without gouging the clutch hub? I plan to follow the advice on Maximumsuzuki about pop riveting some old disks together and using a penny to jam the gears if I have to pull it.
? Drum bolt. When I put the wrench on it, it wasn't loose and moving the wrench just moved the cam gear, which is pretty much what's supposed to happen - correct? Again, no slop in it just the slight space under the head.
? Is there a break-in period for new disks such that they grab for a while until they bed in?

Anyway, any help appreciated as always. It was fun getting in there yesterday and today looks like another chance to hang out in the shop working on the bike so a good day.

1 Yes
2 I jammed something between the swingarm and rear wheel. Not the best but only way for me
3 Correct. I have the gap on there too.
4 Yes. This sounds like your only possible reason. I dont know how the basket should move but it could be that too. I also just clearanced my hub and put in new plates and springs but havent had the chance to ride yet. Everybody has clutch problems haha

Sorry to jump the clutch bandwagon, but I finally got into the clutch on my 99 SE to see why it wasn't working right and want to glean as much wisdom as I can while it's going around. I really want to do this myself rather than sheepishly trucking it to the dealer - more so that I know than to save cash.

Problems included hard shifting and the clutch not fully releasing, even with lever all the way to the bars. Neutral was next to impossible to find, unless engine was off and even then difficult. First thing I checked was cable adjustment which was within spec.

- I drained the oil (which looked brand new, literally - I think there was less than 100 miles on it) and opened the cover to find everything looking new. Most parts ARE new, having been replaced by the PO but this bike hasn't been abused.
- I checked the disks; they were flat when checked against a tablesaw table.
- The basket rotates side to side easily, but with no play on its shaft - does that mean that it doesn't need clearancing on the back?
- The shift drum bolt seems tight when I put a wrench on it, but the head is 1-2mm above the cam gear assy, or whatever it is that the bolt is holding down.

I haven't removed the basket yet - I'm not sure what would be different behind it. The thrust washers are new, so can't be worn yet and I'm loathe to work the lock washer too many times. This would be its second bend.

? Do I need to pull the basket to check on the drum bolt?
? If I have to pull it, what's the best technique to undo and redo the lock washer without gouging the clutch hub? I plan to follow the advice on Maximumsuzuki about pop riveting some old disks together and using a penny to jam the gears if I have to pull it.
? Drum bolt. When I put the wrench on it, it wasn't loose and moving the wrench just moved the cam gear, which is pretty much what's supposed to happen - correct? Again, no slop in it just the slight space under the head.
? Is there a break-in period for new disks such that they grab for a while until they bed in?

Anyway, any help appreciated as always. It was fun getting in there yesterday and today looks like another chance to hang out in the shop working on the bike so a good day.

- Spad

Click to expand...

First, I'm not a pro with this clutch. Mine was hard to find neutral sometimes also. I recently had my "98 apart to check the shift bolt and here's what I found. Removed clutch and stacked every thing in order of removal. Carefully removed the shift bolt. It was tight and felt like it had thread lock on it. Came out hard all the way, but didn't see any residue on the threads, Was careful not to move the shifter parts/linkage. Cleaned the threads, inside and out, with brake cleaner and reinstalled the bolt with thread lock solution. Replaced the drum sleeve and thrust washers with new ones and made an extra washer/spacer instead of sanding the drum for extra clearance. I made the spacer from .025" stainless, but that might be a little too much. Might change it to .015". I think the drum should turn easily and IMO it ought to have some end play, maybe about .005+". When every thing gets up to temp, I think the clutch hub will expand more than the sleeve and change the clearances. Reinstalled the old clutch (has less than a 1k miles on it). Torqued the nut to 40 ft-lb. If you're worried about the lock washer, get a new one, but you can simply bend it at a different place several times. I use an old, large screw driver to stake and unstake the lock washer. You can put a long screw driver/drift/rod accross the swing arm, thru the rear sprocket to keep things from turning. Also works for the newer bikes(KLR etc) to remove the nut on the CS sprocket with mega torque. Put it in a place where it won't get on a spoke. Probably should have checked the torque on the primary sprocket nut while I was in there. Oh well. Mine has a little torque/slap knock noise I don't like, but it's hard to define and is not consistant. Can't here it at all with the shield down. The clutch seems to work ok, although not as good as my old KLX300, or the Transalp. Still a little hard to get neutral. I don't get it, Honda and Yamaha had this figured out a long, long time ago. You could shift thoes old 125s and 250s up and down at will, anytime, anywhere with or without the clutch.. They shouldn't be putting out any bikes these days with clutch/shifitng problems. A new clutch should not need a break in period to shift properly, although will probably work a little better after a few miles.

I got the basket off w/o problems, and didn't mangle anything up too badly getting the bending lock washer off. I made sure everything was OK with the thrust washers and spacer behind it (yup) and wanted to check out why the shift drum bolt was sitting a little proud. It seemed tight, but I figured the best thing to do would be to pull it, clean it off and reinstall it at the right torque with loctite, in case it didn't have any before. As you probably already suspect if you've read this far I torqued it off trying to get it out. It was either in too tight, cross threaded or I just screwed up. Either way, now I'm working on getting out the stub without messing up the shift drum. I've got the stub center drilled about 1/4" and am working with propane and an EZ out to turn it out. I don't know a more inappropriately named tool than an EZ out, but I do know if I break it off in the stub I may end up looking to buy more than just a shift drum bolt so I'm going slow.

[Insert expletive here]

At least now I have a good answer to why one should have more than one motorcycle. This one won't be running for a while.

I got the basket off w/o problems, and didn't mangle anything up too badly getting the bending lock washer off. I made sure everything was OK with the thrust washers and spacer behind it (yup) and wanted to check out why the shift drum bolt was sitting a little proud. It seemed tight, but I figured the best thing to do would be to pull it, clean it off and reinstall it at the right torque with loctite, in case it didn't have any before. As you probably already suspect if you've read this far I torqued it off trying to get it out. It was either in too tight, cross threaded or I just screwed up. Either way, now I'm working on getting out the stub without messing up the shift drum. I've got the stub center drilled about 1/4" and am working with propane and an EZ out to turn it out. I don't know a more inappropriately named tool than an EZ out, but I do know if I break it off in the stub I may end up looking to buy more than just a shift drum bolt so I'm going slow.

[Insert expletive here]

At least now I have a good answer to why one should have more than one motorcycle. This one won't be running for a while.

- Spad

Click to expand...

Looks like you've done this kinda thing before, but just go slow and use larger and larger bits till you get close then if the easy out doesn't work use a tap to get out the last bits. I think it's a 6x1mm. Don't force it, Like you said getting a broken "easy out" or tap out is a real problem. Not impossible, but not easy either. If you can find left hand/reverse twist drill bits, sometimes they catch in the broken part and unscrew it.
From Distech's engine rebuild. http://advrider.com/forums/showpost.php?p=12924794&postcount=160 If things really go south, it looks like Kientech makes/sells an 8mm replacement bolt. You'd have to drill and tap the hole, but it might be a solution.

So I had my clutch basket binding after a re-assembly. Some surfing got me this thread, as well as some on TT and Max-zuke, talking about having to shave some off the basket to get the adequate clearance.

The above pdf was no longer available, so I went ahead with the job, and figured I'd add to the knowledge base here.

What happens that when you tighten the clutch basket nut to the proscribed torque (40-60 NM), the inner basket should turn freely. Mine wasn't. As described by others, the inner and outer thrust washers combined with the spacer collar was not allowing things to rotate properly.

Here's the assembly in place:

That's a MotionPro clutch holder, a very useful tool for more than just what it was intended for. Not expensive, but a must have in any bike wrencher's toolbox. Get one now, even if you don't need it right away, you'll find it's really handy for a lot of things.

The holder is clamped on the inner basket, you can see the nut and tabbed lock washer in the center. Minus the holder, that part should spin freely. If it doesn't, here's what you do:

You'll need a couple of sheets of new emery cloth. I taped mine down to my workbench so that I could start slowly polishing down the gear on the back of the outer basket. This would normally face towards the transmission.

Here is the work station, and you can see the gear, end face already shiny after a few passes:

In a random circular pattern, I proceeded to slowly grind down the end face. You're only taking off a few thousand's of an inch, but it's a hardened gear, so it ain't fast.

I would clean it off, re=oil the whole thing, torque it back in place, and see if it was spinning freely. Can't put material back, so I took my time.

I also took a small piece of emery cloth and polished down the face on the other side, where the other thrust washer rides:

You can see it there as the two half moon shapes either side of the shaft hole.

Works great now. Make sure before every check you clean off all the grit and re-oil it generously, so as to not get a false reading. Ain't fast, but this works.

I just did a short 100 mi. ride on mine this morning and all is back to normal.Spad, from my recent learning experience,torque the clutch hub nut to spec,it could save you some grief.
Ever since I have had this bike the clutch has felt weak even after a new clutch kit.When I had the clutch hub nut too tight the clutch hooked up like nobodys buisiness but it would'nt completely disengage.If I could find an inbetween I would be happy.
Hope that bolt comes out for you Spad!

I just recently got myself a 97' DR350SE and she has been running great. I have mostly only ridden her on the street and some fire-roads and she ran beautifully.

Then this last weekend I had the chance to bring her out to the desert and race an enduro. Well... before the enduro I thought I would just go out and play. I hit a string of woops and right at the end the bike bogged down and would not want to run. I limped her back to the camp and started to remove the carb to clean it out and as soon as I pulled the air box boot off the carb a decent amount of gas dribbled out.

I have already looked around on this thread for people with the same issue but I have not really come across anyone. I did see something about a T-vent mod, but I am not sure that that would solve the problem (I have the stock CV carb).

Sorry spad I can't be much help with the clutch but good luck... I will need to check mine this off season.

I have however been able to get out three times in the last week for trail rides on the little beast..what a great bike for trails..

Spent a few hours running mostly tight single track yesterday, lots of fun. This is only my 3rd season of riding off road and I only do about 20hrs a season so my skills are slowly improving. The biggest problem I run into with my DR is not writing checks with my rear wheel that my front can't cash..That 435 kit really gives these bikes a lot of bark for what they have for stock suspension. Between that and my lack of skills I often find myself getting into trouble because of over use of the throttle hand

Hopefully this winter I will have time and funds to do some suspension upgrades, other than that just a little general maintenance is all she should need to get ready for next season.

I just recently got myself a 97' DR350SE and she has been running great. I have mostly only ridden her on the street and some fire-roads and she ran beautifully.

Then this last weekend I had the chance to bring her out to the desert and race an enduro. Well... before the enduro I thought I would just go out and play. I hit a string of woops and right at the end the bike bogged down and would not want to run. I limped her back to the camp and started to remove the carb to clean it out and as soon as I pulled the air box boot off the carb a decent amount of gas dribbled out.

I have already looked around on this thread for people with the same issue but I have not really come across anyone. I did see something about a T-vent mod, but I am not sure that that would solve the problem (I have the stock CV carb).

All help is appreciated.

Click to expand...

I'm not sure about the gas in your air box boot, but the T-Vent mod should be helpful with the symptoms you describe on the woops.

I just recently got myself a 97' DR350SE and she has been running great. I have mostly only ridden her on the street and some fire-roads and she ran beautifully.

Then this last weekend I had the chance to bring her out to the desert and race an enduro. Well... before the enduro I thought I would just go out and play. I hit a string of woops and right at the end the bike bogged down and would not want to run. I limped her back to the camp and started to remove the carb to clean it out and as soon as I pulled the air box boot off the carb a decent amount of gas dribbled out.

I have already looked around on this thread for people with the same issue but I have not really come across anyone. I did see something about a T-vent mod, but I am not sure that that would solve the problem (I have the stock CV carb).

All help is appreciated.

Click to expand...

Might check for something in the needle and seat (float valve) and the o-ring on the seat.

I just recently got myself a 97' DR350SE and she has been running great. I have mostly only ridden her on the street and some fire-roads and she ran beautifully.

Then this last weekend I had the chance to bring her out to the desert and race an enduro. Well... before the enduro I thought I would just go out and play. I hit a string of woops and right at the end the bike bogged down and would not want to run. I limped her back to the camp and started to remove the carb to clean it out and as soon as I pulled the air box boot off the carb a decent amount of gas dribbled out.

I have already looked around on this thread for people with the same issue but I have not really come across anyone. I did see something about a T-vent mod, but I am not sure that that would solve the problem (I have the stock CV carb).

The DR250. The little brother to the 350. There does not seem like there is very much info about this bike.

I am trying to get one running and wanted more info on there. ANyone have a good site with specs and reviews, write up...

Some questions I have.

What carb does this thing run (92 dr250s)- BST 28mm
samme air box and duct as the 350?
Horse power. Read it has a 29hp max. the site must be wrong.
CDI is it interchangeable the the 350's
Stock sprocket size?

Click to expand...

According to my Suzuki manual, the '92 DR250S carb is a Mikuni BST33SS. The DR250N has a Mikuni TM31SS.

Unknown regarding the airbox & duct similarities. I don't have a 350 to compare it to (yet).

I can't find anything in the manual regarding horsepower, although I would agree 29 HP seems pretty optimistic.

I have read 250 and 350 CDI's are different in advance curves due to the 250 making it's max power at higher RPM compared to the 350.

Stock sprocket size on my '94 was 15/43. Nearly all my riding is on single-track, so I changed it to 13/47.

CDI is interchangeable. People say the DR250's spark advance is more aggressive, and they are probably right; I've found if you put it on a DR350 with a higher compresison ratio (10.5:1) it will ping below 7000 ft elevation.

I never noted what my stock gearing was on the 250. Something to keep in mind is the 250 has a different primary drive ratio than the 350, so you really can't compare final drive ratios with the 350. Most of the time I run 14/47 on my bike which has the 250 primary drive and tranny.

I take it you are not the original "G" man. He was a DR350 guru that had an awesome website (that has since been deleted).

"T" vent could help your problem. Another thing to look at is the kick stand saftey. Best to delete it. Gas in the boot though??

Click to expand...

As for the kick stand safety that was one of my first things to remove when I first got the bike.

And yes after a short ride through a string of woops, the second I would give just a little throttle she would bog out so I limped it back to camp and started to remove the carb, as soon as I loosened the clamp for the air box side boot it drained out a good stream of gas.

As for the kick stand safety that was one of my first things to remove when I first got the bike.

And yes after a short ride through a string of woops, the second I would give just a little throttle she would bog out so I limped it back to camp and started to remove the carb, as soon as I loosened the clamp for the air box side boot it drained out a good stream of gas.